King Green strongly disagrees with T.J. Dillashaw’s assessment of Anthony Smith.
Dillashaw recently claimed that “Lionheart” lacks the heart to become a UFC champion, accusing him of tending to quit in fights — though he notably failed to mention Smith’s title fight against Jon Jones.
Green, however, pushed back against Dillashaw’s remarks, arguing that Smith’s extensive fight record is proof of his toughness and resilience.
“When you said he wasn’t a champ or he wasn’t going to be a champ, I get that, brother, I get it, but there’s other parts to that,” Green said on the JAXXON PODCAST. “You’re not going to understand. I was looking up your record. You’re 18-5, is it? OK, so that’s 23 fights. You see how many fights Anthony Smith has? He has like 50-something, crazy number.
“I’m not comparing the two. What I’m trying to get you to understand is this: When you say he don’t have no heart, you don’t walk that walk 50-something times against the UFC’s best.”
In March 2019, Smith fought Jon Jones for the UFC light heavyweight championship. During the fight, Jones struck the challenger with an illegal knee to a downed opponent, a foul that could have led to a disqualification. Instead, “Lionheart” chose to continue, ultimately losing by unanimous decision — a moment many see as proof of his warrior mentality.
Green continued his defense of Smith, emphasizing the toll that years of fighting take on a competitor.
“One thing that you’ve been dealing with—injuries—you can understand that part,” Green said, addressing Dillashaw. “For you to go out there 50-something times, you have to go out there busted up a lot. I think we don’t take into consideration some of the things that maybe happen behind the scenes.
“Yeah, I see what you were saying, too. Sometimes there’s a little quit in him, but sometimes you don’t know, bro. My nose is already broke four times, and he just hit me right in my sh*t again.”
Anthony Smith is set to step into the octagon one last time before retiring from professional MMA. His farewell fight will be against Zhang Mingyang at UFC Fight Night in Kansas City on April 26.
After this bout, Smith will officially retire, closing the book on a career that has spanned more than 50 professional fights.
